A Sign of the Millennium: Satellite Receiving Dishes

Randall Speare, A.M.S., C.M.C.A.

Once upon a time, television viewers watched between three and six channels, and a rooftop antenna was the sign that there was good viewing inside. Now that same antenna signals a family living in the past. We have hundreds of options for TV watching, and even more uses for the television itself. TV can access the Internet, surf the web, and send e-mail. It is also possible for a viewer to receive hundreds of channels by getting a private satellite dish. (‘Dish’ while not the technical term, is a term that every lay person understands.)

Nothing could be more state-of-the-art than having a dish of your very own. The future is here. And a lot of people are worried that the future may not be pretty. Mention satellites, and homeowner associations envision a space age environment with thousands of dishes aimed skyward, disrupting a peaceful horizon, disturbing neighbors. Does it have to be that way?

No.

First let’s look at the laws that protect an individual’s right to benefit from both choice and competition in video programming distribution. Whether you call it an over-the-air-receiving-device (OTARD), receiving antenna, antenna, or dish, the laws promoting freedom of choice apply. Individuals now have the right to install receiving antenna on the property in which they live. While you may be imagining something that resembles a satellite farm, the reality is far less unsightly. Most receiving antennae have a diameter of about twenty inches (half a meter) or less, although regulations apply to dishes as large as thirty-nine inches.

In order to be effective, the receiving device has to point toward its satellite in space. Satellites that send signals to these dishes are hanging over one spot on the earth’s surface—the equator. The antenna has to point toward the satellite to properly receive the signal. If it’s right on the equator, the dish can point straight up, but anywhere else on the planet, the device has to be angled. The further north (or south) a receiving dish is, the lower it will point. So neighbors who look out and see a dish that seems to be aiming at their window can take heart that it is not an eavesdropping tool, but just a receiver pointing to its satellite transmitter.

The issues that concern most homeowner associations are the safety and appearance of the property. Boards and managers have gone to great pains to maintain the value and safety of the property by controlling appearance and conditions. By-laws address how owners and residents may treat their property exteriors; what they can put in, on, and up. Entire issues of this magazine are devoted to landscaping, painting, and security. Now that owners have the right to install and use a variety of reception antennae, the association needs guidelines that will continue to preserve the integrity of the property.

What Can a Resident Do?

Residents can install over-the-air receiving devices on any property that is theirs exclusively to use. The key word is ‘exclusively’. Balconies, patios, decks, etc., are for the owners’ private use, and no association or landlord may interfere with the right to install and maintain an antenna. Tenants do not need landlord permission, and owners do not need association approval.

Recent rulings make it very clear: an association can not impose any restrictions that make it difficult for someone to install and enjoy a dish for receiving video programming. Simply put that means no fees, no delays, no preventative measures, no added requirements… nothing may create circumstances that preclude reception of an acceptable quality signal.

Acceptable Restrictions

What can an association do? It can protect the safety of its residents, and preserve the historic nature of a property. Nothing may interfere with public safety. Receiving antenna should not impede walkways, doors, fire lanes, and safety devices (like hoses and hydrants). The dishes should not be too close to power lines. Trustees may specify the use of guy wires to prevent falling, and any other appropriate anchoring methods.

Historic areas, if they are listed in the National Register of Historic Places, may restrict the installation of satellite receiving device. They cannot do anything excessive, but they can preserve the historic nature and appearance of the property.

The Board of Trustees can insist that owners paint a dish to help make the antenna fit better into the environment. They can forbid infringement on any common areas: no overhang from balcony or deck. The freedom to install an antenna applies to dishes under one meter (thirty-nine inches) in diameter, with masts of less than twelve feet. Anything larger than that may require a local permit.

It is the resident—the dish owner—who is responsible for any costs related to the reception antenna. This applies to installation, and compliance with association rules, as well as the costs of any incidents related to the antenna, and any medical expenses or damages the antenna might cause.

Other Options

Many people will continue to opt for other means of assuring good television signal reception. If an association is concerned that satellite receiving dishes are going to multiply until they affect the property appearance. the Board can try some pro-active measures. Essentially, this comes down to considering some centralized reception options that will substitute for the individual ones. If enough owners are interested and/or willing to pay, it might be worth trying to make a deal with the local cable company. Another option is considering the installation of a single, central, receiving device for all owners to use (much like a rooftop antenna or like the provision of cable access).

One caveat if you do look into the centralized possibility: offering the option does not permit you to stop a resident from installing a private reception device anyway. The law is about consumer rights and competition. You can’t curtail them, no matter how you feel about the satellite dishes. There is no way around this sign of the times.

Randall Speare is President of Hodan Properties, Inc., and Hodan Management, Ltd. in Boston.